US embassy cable - 97ISLAMABAD2488

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 002488 
 
 
DEPT FOR SA/PAB, S/CT, NEA, EUR/CEN; LONDON FOR POL/TUELLER; PARIS 
FOR POL/RAVELING; ROME FOR POL/DEMPSEY; MBABANE FOR MALINOWSKI 
 
E.O. 12958:  DECL:  3/27/07 
TAGS:  PTER, PGOV, KISL, PREL, AF, PK, SA 
SUBJECT:  AFGHANISTAN:  TALIBAN OFFICIAL CONFIRMS THAT MULLAH OMAR 
ASKED BIN LADEN TO REFRAIN FROM "ANTI-SAUDI" ACTIVITIES 
 
REFS:  (A) FBIS LD2603173097 (B) ISLAMABAD 1750 
 
1.  (U) CLASSIFIED BY TOM PRICE, POLITICAL COUNSELOR.  REASONS: 1.5 (C) (D). 
 
2.  (C) SUMMARY:  MARCH 27 PAKISTANI PRESS REPORTS STATE THAT 
MULLAH OMAR MET WITH FUGITIVE SAUDI FINANCIER BIN LADEN IN KANDAHAR 
ON MARCH 25 AND TOLD HIM NOT TO USE "AFGHAN TERRITORY FOR ANTI- 
SAUDI GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES."  TAYYAB HUSSAINI, A GOOD CONTACT AT 
THE AFGHAN EMBASSY HERE, CONFIRMED THESE REPORTS AND NOTED THAT 
OMAR'S COMMENTS DID NOT REPRESENT A SHIFT IN TALIBAN POLICY TOWARD 
BIN LADEN, BUT WERE A "WARNING."  SAUDI EMBASSY POLOFF HAMZA GASSAS 
TOLD POLOFF THAT OMAR'S COMMENTS COULD MEAN THAT THE TALIBAN ARE 
BECOMING MORE CONCERNED ABOUT BIN LADEN'S ACTIVITIES.  END SUMMARY. 
 
OMAR MEETS BIN LADEN 
--------------------/ 
 
3.  (U) PAKISTANI NEWSPAPERS REPORTED ON MARCH 27 THAT MULLAH OMAR, 
THE TALIBAN LEADER, MET WITH OSAMA BIN LADEN, EX-SAUDI FINANCIER 
AND SUPPORTER OF RADICAL ISLAMIC CAUSES, IN KANDAHAR ON MARCH 25 TO 
INFORM HIM OF "THE CONCERN OF THE SAUDI GOVERNMENT ABOUT HIS 
ACTIVITIES" IN AFGHANISTAN.  ACCORDING TO THE ARTICLES, OMAR THEN 
TOLD BIN LADEN THAT HE SHOULD NOT USE "AFGHAN TERRITORY FOR ANTI- 
SAUDI GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES."   HE ALSO REPORTEDLY TOLD BIN LADEN 
THAT IT WAS HIS IMPRESSION THAT U.S. FORCES SHOULD WITHDRAW FROM 
SAUDI ARABIA BECAUSE THEY ARE NO LONGER NEEDED THERE.  ONE OF THE 
ARTICLES GOES ON TO NOTE THAT THE TALIBAN DELEGATION TO THE MARCH 
23 OIC SUMMIT IN ISLAMABAD HAD MET WITH THE SAUDI DELEGATION AND 
BEEN INFORMED OF SAUDI CONCERNS ABOUT BIN LADEN. 
 
EMBOFF SAYS TALIBAN HAVE NOT CHANGED POLICY ON BIN LADEN 
--------------------------------------------- -----------/ 
 
4.  (C) ON MARCH 27, POLOFF MET WITH TAYYAB HUSSAINI, SECOND 
SECRETARY AT THE TALIBAN-CONTROLLED AFGHAN EMBASSY HERE, AND ASKED 
HIM TO COMMENT ON THE ARTICLES.  HUSSAINI, WHO SAID HE HAD SPOKEN 
TO TALIBAN OFFICIALS IN KANDAHAR EARLIER IN THE DAY, CONFIRMED THAT 
THE ARTICLES ARE ACCURATE:  "MULLAH OMAR SUMMONED BIN LADEN FROM 
JALALABAD AND REQUESTED A MEETING WITH HIM IN KANDAHAR BECAUSE HE 
IS CONCERNED THAT BIN LADEN IS BECOMING TOO AGGRESSIVE IN HIS 
PUBLIC STATEMENTS."  HUSSAINI DID NOT DIVULGE WHAT BIN LADEN HAD 
SAID THAT HAD AROUSED TALIBAN CONCERN.  (NOTE:  BIN LADEN HAS GIVEN 
A NUMBER OF INTERVIEWS IN RECENT WEEKS IN WHICH HE ATTACKED SAUDI 
ARABIA AND THE U.S.)  POLOFF ASKED HUSSAINI WHETHER THE TALIBAN 
DELEGATION HAD MET WITH SAUDI REPRESENTATIVES AT THE RECENT OIC 
SUMMIT.  HUSSAINI REPLIED THAT MULLAH RABBANI, THE HEAD OF THE 
TALIBAN DELEGATION AND CHIEF OF THE "CARETAKER COUNCIL" IN KABUL, 
HAD MET WITH A SAUDI OFFICIAL NAMED "NAYIF," BUT DENIED THAT THE 
QUESTION OF BIN LADEN HAD BEEN RAISED.  (NOTE:  WE DO NOT KNOW 
WHETHER HUSSAINI WAS REFERRING TO NAYIF SAUD, THE SAUDI MINISTER OF 
INTERIOR;  WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO CONFIRM LOCALLY WHETHER NAYIF 
SAUD WAS A MEMBER THE SAUDI DELEGATION.) 
 
5.  (C) HUSSAINI ALSO TOLD US THAT NOT TOO MUCH SHOULD BE READ INTO 
OMAR'S REMARKS; "THIS DOES NOT REPRESENT ANY SHIFT IN POLICY BY THE 
TALIBAN.  WE WILL CONTINUE TO OFFER HIM (BIN LADEN) SHELTER, BUT HE 
MUST ABIDE BY OUR RULES."  (NOTE:  THE TALIBAN HAVE TOLD EMBOFFS ON 
SEVERAL OCCASIONS THAT BIN LADEN CAN STAY IN AFGHANISTAN, BUT 
SHOULD NOT ENGAGE IN "TERRORIST ACTIVITIES" WHILE THERE.)  HUSSAINI 
ADDED THAT BIN LADEN SHOULD CONSIDER OMAR'S COMMENTS A "WARNING." 
 
MEETING WITH SAUDI DIPLOMAT 
---------------------------/ 
 
6.  (C) IN A MARCH 27 MEETING WITH POLOFF, HAMZA GASSAS, A 
POLITICAL OFFICER AT THE SAUDI ARABIAN EMBASSY, STATED THAT HE IS 
"UNSURE OF WHAT TO MAKE OF OMAR'S COMMENTS."  SOME OF THE PRESS 
ARTICLES INDICATED THAT THE TALIBAN ARE BECOMING MORE CONCERNED 
ABOUT BIN LADEN, WHICH WOULD BE POSITIVE, HE CONTINUED.  HOWEVER, 
OMAR'S COMMENTS THAT U.S. TROOPS SHOULD NOT BE STATIONED IN SAUDI 
ARABIA WERE OF CONCERN, HE RELATED.  QUERIED WHETHER A TALIBAN 
DELEGATION HAD IN FACT MET WITH SAG REPRESENTATIVES ON THE MARGINS 
OF THE OIC SUMMIT, GASSAS RESPONDED THAT HE DID NOT KNOW, BUT DID 
NOT THINK THAT THEY HAD MET WITH CROWN PRINCE ABDULLAH, WHO HEADED 
THE SAUDI DELEGATION.  GASSAS SAID HE DID NOT KNOW WHETHER NAYIF 
SAUD WAS A MEMBER OF THE DELEGATION, AND CONCLUDED BY PROMISING TO 
LOOK INTO THE ISSUE FURTHER. 
 
COMMENT 
-------/ 
 
7.  (C) BASED ON HUSSAINI'S COMMENTS AND THE PRESS REPORTS, IT 
APPEARS THAT THE TALIBAN MAY BE WORRIED ABOUT BIN LADEN'S RECENT 
ACTIVITIES AND THE REACTION THEY ARE PROVOKING FROM THE SAUDIS 
AND/OR THE U.S.  AT THE SAME TIME, HOWEVER, IT IS FAR FROM CERTAIN 
THAT THE TALIBAN ARE FEELING THE HEAT ON THIS ISSUE DIRECTLY FROM 
THE SAUDIS, AS SOME OF THE PRESS STORIES HERE SUGGEST.  WE WILL 
CONTINUE TO PROBE IN AN ATTEMPT TO LEARN WHO SAID WHAT TO WHOM ON 
THIS ISSUE. 
 
 
SIMONS